The Savior and Her Guardian
by dragyngirl12
Summary: Alex Shepard and Riley Stark Had no idea what they were getting into when they joined the Alliance. This is a retelling of ME1 with my own twist and OC.


**Hello readers, this is my first Mass Effect fic. First I'd like to say that I own nothing but character Riley Stark. Anything you recognize belongs to Bioware. Also To fit my story the attack on Mindoir will be happening a few years later the Mass Effect timeline. Instead of 2170 it will be on 2179. I won't say why since I don't want to give any spoilers. But I will say it's because I was too lazy to come up with another back story for Stark and Bioware had already had a good one set up.**

**Here's my Shepard's Profile-**

**Name: Alexandra Shepard**

**Born: April 11****th****, 2154**

**Pre-Service History- Earthborn**

**Psych profile-Sole Survivor**

**Class-Soldier**

**Looks- Jet black hair, green eyes, and about 5'9" in height.**

**My OC Character's Profile-**

**Name- Riley Stark**

**Born: March 25****th****, 2151**

**Pre-Service History- Earthborn**

**Class- Vanguard/Infiltrator**

**Looks- Blond hair, golden amber eyes, and about 6'1" in height.**

**April 11****th****, 2172**

It was a cold night in the slums of New York. Small snowflakes floated gently from the sky and lightly dusted the ground. The stench of rotting garbage was nearly overwhelming. The only sounds in the night were the speeding skycars zooming in between the buildings and two young women arguing amongst themselves.

The taller of the two was 21 year old Riley Stark. Her blond hair was twisted into a single plait and her golden amber eyes blazed with agitation as she argued with her teenaged companion. The 18 year old, Alexandra Shepard, was slightly shorter than Stark. Her messy, short hair was jet black and her eyes were a beautiful emerald green. Both women wore matching leather jacket with a red cloth tied around their right biceps.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now, Alex!?" Stark growled

"No, I'm not." Shepard said desperately "I have to do this, Rye. I can't be a criminal anymore!"

The blond scoffed. "And joining the Alliance is so much better." She bit out sarcastically "You're trading one career of violence for another, except it's mostly legal with the military."

"Yes, but at least I'll be protecting people instead of ruining their lives" Shepard retorted.

That stopped whatever comeback Stark could come up with. She sighed and folded her arms across her chest. She took a moment to observe her friend. Her body language practically radiated stubbornness. Stark knew Shepard had made up her mind. And when Shepard made up her mind there was no changing it. Stark also knew Shepard was not made for gang life. She was just too _good _for this life. The Tenth Street Reds would be the death of Alex Shepard if she stayed. And Stark couldn't let that happen.

"Okay." Shepard's eyes widened at the fact she won so easily. She had expected a fight almost as big as the one when she had joined The Reds. She still had the scar on her left eyebrow from when Stark tried to use her training to dissuade her from joining.

But then Shepard's surprise quickly turned to annoyance when Stark continued "But I'm going with you."

"I don't need a babysitter, Riley, I'm 18 years old." Shepard responded irritably

"I know, but you are my sister in every way that counts, and the only person I actually care about." Stark replied seriously. She took a step closer and looked Shepard in the eye. "And I protect the people I care about."

Warmth blossomed in Shepard's chest at Stark's words. She should have known Stark wouldn't let her go join the Alliance alone. Stark never trusted people easily, but when she did she was completely loyal to them almost to a fault. And Shepard was the only person Stark was truly close to. Ever since Stark had saved her from her abusive foster family when she was eleven, Stark had taken up the role as a big sister to Shepard. Witch also meant she was also very protective of Shepard.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Rye?" Shepard questioned "You're not exactly someone who likes to follow the rules."

Stark smirked and let out a chuckle. "I guess you'll have to teach me how to be a girl scout like you, Alex, because you're not going without me." Stark's amused expression grew when she added "Besides, you have an uncanny talent for finding trouble. You need me watching your ass."

That got Shepard to smile. She immediately rushed forward brought Stark into an extremely tight hug. Stark let out a surprised grunt and her hands were held awkwardly in the air, as she was unsure what to do with them. She wasn't really the hugging type. Finally she settled on patting Shepard awkwardly on the shoulders.

Finally, Shepard released her. She stepped away from Stark, who looked a little embarrassed, and said "Thank you."

Stark nodded in acknowledgment and they turned and walked towards their apartment building. As with all life changing decisions they knew their life would change. But they had no idea just how much the fateful decision would be the ultimate test of strength of will they ever face.

**Please forgive any grammar mistakes as I am the only one who edits this after it is written. I hope Riley Stark ends up as a character people like. She's definitely not going to be a paragon in this story. I'm kind of inspired by Malcolm Reynolds in Serenity (incredible show. I have no idea why they canceled it.) So she will always do the right thing when it matters, yet she's not afraid to break the rules. As for her name I've always liked the name Riley, and I am a bit of a Game of Thrones fan, so I barrowed her last name from that.**


End file.
